Ikea’s promotion where everyone who scans its loyalty card when paying gets a ‘free’ gift, which could be worth £1,000+ or less than a quid. This was hugely popular when it ran from May to August, and now it’s back…

This is basically a prize draw, but a good one, because everyone wins something – it might be a hot dog, which normally costs 60p, or you could be really lucky and scoop a family trip to Sweden with £500 spending money.

All you need to do is scan a code from your receipt by Sun 20 Nov. Also dig out old receipts, as this has been running since Mon 26 Sep.

Sounds like a good deal, but what’s the catch?

You have to buy something…

This shouldn’t be too much of problem as anyone who’s ever been to Ikea knows how difficult it is to leave empty-handed. Yet if you do manage to navigate the flatpack maze without so much as a candle or a cactus falling into your trolley, you could always pick something up to try your luck in the draw.

Normally, we wouldn’t suggest spending money just to enter a competition, but as a win of some kind is guaranteed, grabbing a 40p beer glass or a 35p ice pack (both useful items and the cheapest we could find) can at least save you 25p on a hot dog, but, you never know, may possibly win you a seriously hot prize.

You need an Ikea Family card…

To be entered into the giveaway, you need to scan an Ikea Family card when you pay (Ikea Family is just its free loyalty card, you can sign up online or in store).

When you initially sign up, it can take up to four weeks for the plastic card to arrive. Yet you’ll still be eligible for the freebies – just give your membership number at the till when you pay. You’ll find your membership number on the temporary paper card you’re given when signing up (you’ll need to print the card yourself if you sign up online).

You can also sign up using the Ikea app, which you can download for free on both Google Play and Apple App Store. You can then show your membership number via the app at the till in stores, or enter it online when you pay.

How to claim your freebie…

Here’s what you need to do:

1. When paying for your item(s), swipe your Ikea Family card at the checkout. If you’ve only just signed up and don’t yet have a plastic card, show your temporary paper card at the checkout (or you can just quote the membership number from it).

2. To find out what you’ve won, take your receipt (which will have a unique code printed on it) to the Ikea Family kiosk in store and get it scanned. Alternatively, enter the code from your receipt on Ikea’s Swipe A Surprise website. As long as you swiped an Ikea Family card when the purchase was made, any receipt dated Mon 26 Sep or after is eligible.

3. You’ll be issued a voucher saying what prize you’ve won. Smaller prizes can be claimed instantly, or at any time until Sun 20 Nov. Winners of larger prizes (eg, Sweden holiday) will need to speak to the store manager to redeem their voucher.

In theory, you can obtain multiple codes in one day by splitting items into two or more transactions. However, before you start thinking up tricks (eg, clearing the shelves of all the spatulas and putting them on separate receipts), bear in mind you can only claim one freebie per cardholder, per day, and the last date to claim is Sun 20 Nov.

The T&Cs do state it’s “subject to availability” so if all the free gifts are claimed before the end date (Sun 20 Nov), Ikea could decide to end the promotion early. Of course, it’ll more likely keep dishing out the cheaper prizes to all others who enter just to keep everyone happy. Who ever heard of Ikea running out of hot dogs anyway?

MoneySavers’ success stories…

Last time Ikea ran this offer, we were swamped with messages from lucky winners. Predictably, lots won hot dogs and doughnuts – but some won bigger prizes too. A few examples:

“Cannot believe it. I won a Sweden holiday for four with £500 spending cash. Keep pinching myself thinking it is a dream. Cannot stop smiling.” – Maureen S

“If you win more than food, claim it another day – you have to swipe your card to claim the prize, which means ANOTHER go! I had a great chain like that last time, including two packs of cutlery, two packs of coat hangers, some large picture frames and several storage boxes – all from a 35p cup!” – Patricia B

“I won a Swedish dinner party in my own home at Lakeside today, looking forward to that!” – Laura Ann D

“I won a doormat. Surprised, because I never win anything. I expected a hot dog.” – Geraldine C

“I won a hot dog, and the next day a picture frame. I’ve two more receipts to try…” – Marion R

“I won a meal for four people in the Ikea restaurant, worth £26.” – Jo W

“Won a £500 gift card! The manager told us to wait and returned after about 15 minutes with the gift card and a box with two champagne glasses and a bottle of their fizzy pear juice! Amazing! Never won anything like that in my life – I’m lucky if I win a prize at the school raffle!” – Andrea A

“I won a doughnut, but they’d run out so I was offered a Danish pastry. They made me pay for the upgrade!” – Nicky K

Will you be trying your luck in Ikea’s prize draw? Maybe you’ve already won big? Leave a comment below, on Twitter at @MSE_Deals or on Facebook.

Have your say

This is an open discussion; anyone can post. Comments may be edited, and are only published during the working day. Please report any spam, illegal, offensive, racist, libellous posts (inc username) to fbteam@moneysavingexpert.com.

Related Articles

As I’m still in hospital battling Crohn’s Disease, I’ve been taking some time off from terrorising the supermarket till staff with my usual stacks of coupons… but what I have been doing is collecting them up for when I’m back on my feet. Nothing gets between the Coupon Kid and his coupons! As you may already know,...

The ‘Tempur Challenge’ is back and for many it’s the kind of deal dreams are made of – what other offer have you seen where having a lie down gets you a £50 freebie? Until Sun 4 Mar, you can take the ‘Tempur Challenge’ – basically, it’s an easy bit of market research – to claim a...

Take a daytime nap and bag a free £65 pillow. It’s the kind of deal dreams are made of… Until Mon 7 Aug, if you’re near any branch of Dreams – the bed and mattress shop – you can take the ‘Tempur Challenge’ to claim a free travel pillow, which it normally sells for £65. Basically, it’s an...

MSE's Coupon Kid

How this site works

We think it's important you understand the strengths and limitations of the site. We're a journalistic website and aim to provide the best MoneySaving guides, tips, tools and techniques, but can't guarantee to be perfect, so do note you use the information at your own risk and we can't accept liability if things go wrong.

This info does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances and remember we focus on rates not service.

We don't as a general policy investigate the solvency of companies mentioned (how likely they are to go bust), but there is a risk any company can struggle and it's rarely made public until it's too late (see the Section 75 guide for protection tips).

Do note, while we always aim to give you accurate product info at the point of publication, unfortunately price and terms of products and deals can always be changed by the provider afterwards, so double check first.

We often link to other websites, but we can't be responsible for their content.

Always remember anyone can post on the MSE forums, so it can be very different from our opinion.

MoneySavingExpert.com is part of the MoneySupermarket Group, but is entirely editorially independent. Its stance of putting consumers first is protected and enshrined in the legally-binding MSE Editorial Code.